The Fourth Apprentice
by nyteraven
Summary: Hollyleaf is dead and Ivykit and Dovekit have Greencough. It’s hard for Jayfeather and Lionblaze to cope. Hollyleaf is watching her clan and is horrified with all the evil that lurks within ready, to pounce at a moments notice. Full Summary Inside.
1. Chapter 1

Title: The Fourth Apprentice

Rating: T for blood

Genre: Fantasy/Adventure

Summary: Hollyleaf is dead and Ivykit and Dovekit have Greencough. It's hard for Jayfeather and Lionblaze to cope. Hollyleaf is watching her clan and is horrified with all the evil that lurks within ready, to pounce at a moments notice. She can't reach Jayfeather. And Lionblaze is ready to give up everything he knows for his only litter mate left… who is unknowingly in danger. Rated T for blood.

A/N: Hey, my name is Jaggedwing. I absolutely love the Warriors series ^^ This is my first fanfic so be nice please! This fic takes place after Sunrise so if you haven't read it yet, I warn you there are spoilers in here so you may wanna read that first.

Prologue

Hollyleaf kept running until she heard the sound of the cave collapsing. She stopped dead. _"This wasn't what I wanted. I wanted to get away _not_ die."_ She yowled at the top of her voice as a boulder dropped on her back. "Starclan, NOOOO!" Her mournful yowl brought more rocks upon her, crushing and breaking her bones. She could faintly hear Jayfeather screeching to her. Then, a new, sweet, calm voice spoke.

"Come little one. Live in Starclan knowing you did the right thing."

"I don't want to go. What about my brothers? And the prophecy? I can't die!" she yowled to the unseen cat.

"You were to lead your brothers, not be part of the three," the voice said soothingly. "You can watch them fulfill the prophecy from Starclan and guide them in there time of need… along with the third." Hollyleaf tried to reply but all that came out was a strangled gasp. Suddenly she saw her brothers smiling and laughing with her. She saw Brambleclaw as well. Though he wasn't her father he hadn't known and had always thought of them as his children. She saw Firestar talking to her patiently with Sandstorm by her side and she saw Cinderheart and Poppyfrost passing a ball of moss. She longed to be with her clan and her thoughtful brothers. She wasn't ready to die! A tail touched her and she looked up to see Honeyfern coaxing her to follow. Realizing she could do nothing to stop her death she let out one last agonized cry. She then stood, leaving her body behind, never to be found.

Hollyleaf looked around; she was in a clearing with four giant oaks bordering it. There were also cats, a blue-gray she-cat, Honeyfern, an old grumpy she-cat and many more that smelt like the four clans, though there was another scent she didn't recognize. She looked to where it came from and saw three cats; a very old dark gray tom, a brown and cream tabby she-cat and a silver tabby she-cat. They smelt familiar, like clans but not like any of the four clans in the forest. The blue-gray she-cat stepped forward solemnly. "Hollyleaf, I never wanted to see you here so early but since you are, we had better fill you in. Look into the water."

Hollyleaf obeyed hastily. She looked down and what she saw made her blood freeze with horror. A gray tabby tom was crouched and behind him a pair of cold eyes were watching him, ready to spring.


	2. Chapter 2

_**A/n:**_** HI, so chap one is up, this is my first fan fic so please review! Sorry it took awhile to update.**

_Chapter 1: Ceremony_

Jayfeather had been staying close to Dovekit and her sister since the first day they had left the nursery. Ivykit had taken liking to him and had asked if on her sixth moon she could be his apprentice. Dovekit liked Lionblaze more; he was the best hunter and fighter in the clan.

She looked up as jayfeather and his brother padded into the nursery happily. "What's gotten you so happy?" Dovekit asked. Jayfeather looked down on her in question.

"Surely you're happier then we are? We are going to be your mentors but it's you who are going to be the apprentices today." Dovekit jumped. She had forgotten it was her apprentice ceremony today. "_This was great. Now she had the best mentor ever! Ivykit will be happy to become a medicine cat apprentice. I, Lionblaze and Ivykit are the only ones he's really nice to." _She looked up and almost bounced up with delight. She would be the best warrior ever!

"Can I tell Whitewing" she begged.

Lionblaze sighed, his eyes alight with amusement. "Why not?"he laughed. She bounded over to her sister and mother and quickly told them the good news, impatient for the ceremony to start.

Fortunately she didn't have to wait long. The familiar summons came from outside the familiar nursery. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey join here beneath Highledge." Dovekit needed no second urging. She was in the clearing underneath Highledge before you could say "mouse", her mother racing after her, trying to groom her for the ceremony. Firestar sat on Highledge, eyes brimming with laughter as his clan gathered around him.

"Ivykit, Dovekit, please step up." Dovekit tried to act dignified as she walked towards her leader but could barely suppress a squeal of excitement. Firestar's voice rang clear as he announced the ancient apprentice ceremony. "Dovekit and Ivykit have reached there sixth moon. Dovekit," he said, turning to her, "you are ready to become an apprentice. From now on you will be known as Dovepaw… Lionblaze, you are ready for an apprentice." Firestar paused as she touched noses with Lionblaze. "Ivykit, you are ready to be apprenticed. From now on you will be known as Ivypaw. Jayfeather, Ivypaw wishes to train as a medicine cat." He flicked his tail to show the meeting was over; the clan began to chant their new names. "Dovepaw, Ivypaw…" Lionblaze looked down on his apprentice, smiling and murmured, "Why don't you go find a nest in the apprentice den. I'll show you around tomorrow." Dovepaw nodded and bounded over to the other apprentices, who greeted her warmly.

"Lets find you a nest" Blossompaw mewed.

Bumblepaw looked over and mewed loudly, "that is, if those to great lumps haven't taken up all the room!" Foxpaw glanced at him and let out a mock growl and pounced on the smaller apprentice. The two immediately fell into a play fight. Briarpaw, coming to the aid of her brother, was tackled by Icepaw. Blossompaw just laughed then signaled towards the apprentice den and Dovepaw quickly followed the quiet apprentice. Blossompaw showed her a place to sleep and Dovepaw looked around. Weren't there two more apprentices?

She looked to blossompaw. "Where are the two other apprentices?" she questioned.

Blossompaw replied in a quiet voice. "There out training with their mentors; Graystripe and Sorreltail." Dovepaw nodded to the other apprentice then settled down in her new nest and quickly fell into the darkness of dreams.

-_-_-

Dovepaw awoke to the murmur of a voice; she looked up and saw a gray tom with dark blood-red eyes. His voice was almost unintelligible so Dovepaw had to strain her ears to hear. "There will be three kin of his kin, who hold the power of the stars in their paws." He looked to her and, quite suddenly, lunged for her throat.

Starting awake with a startled gasp, Dovepaw saw Icepaw crouching over her. Icepaw snorted, "Really? You're almost as bad as Lionblaze, moving around in your sleep. I thought I'd finally get a good nights rest with him gone. I guess I was wrong." She growled though Dovepaw could see a friendly gleam in her eyes. Icepaw continued. "Come on, were going to practice our fighting skills. Don't worry, Lionblaze will teach you the basic techniques first." She added seeing the worried look in her friends' eyes. Dovepaw suddenly felt eager to begin her training so she just nodded and jumped up to dash for the training hollow, Icepaw hard on her heels. Dovepaw's dream was at the back of her mind.

-_-_-

Dovepaw came back to camp, worn out by battle training. _Lionblaze is such a good fighter! _Her mind flew back to training, where she had jumped at Lionblaze who had dodged and raked his sheathed claws down her side. Lionblaze's voice brought her back to the present. "You can take some fresh kill to the elders then your done for today; tomorrow I'll show you the borders." Dovepaw nodded and scampered off towards the fresh-kill pile. _How come Lionblaze watches everything I do? _She wondered. She could feel his eyes following her as she ran across the clearing. She grabbed a big rabbit that would feed all three elders and padded over.

Inside, Ferncloud was speaking to Ivypaw who was searching the elders for ticks. The smell made Dovepaw gage. Ivypaw looked up as her sister walked in; her eyes were lit with the joy of being a medicine cat. Dovepaw dipped her head in mock respect. Her sister purred and Ferncloud let out a small chuckle. She dropped the rabbit in front of Ferncloud and begged "Please tell us a story!" Mousefur startled Dovepaw; she had thought the old elder was sleeping!

"They never change. They always want a story." The elder continued to grumble but nodded and then started. "Well, what do you want to hear about?"

The two sisters looked at each other then turned to the elder. "About the great journey!" they answered in unison. The elder nodded and started the story. Occasionally Ferncloud or Longtail would help with the details.

The story of the Great Journey was one of the sisters favorites. They had always wondered what it would be like to lead an entire clan to their salvation. It sounded difficult and probably dangerous but there was no doubt in their minds that it would be the adventure of a lifetime.

-_-_-

Dovepaw padded to the fresh-kill pile where the rest of the apprentices were. They looked up as she walked over and when she was within ear-shot Briarpaw called "How was your first day as an apprentice?"

Dovepaw replied happily. She was one step closer to becoming a warrior! "It was great! Lionblaze is really nice!"

Foxpaw looked at her. "Your right. He's not usually that nice to some cats."

Dovepaw nodded then said "Well, I'm going to sleep." As she padded over to her den her dream came back to the forefront of her mind. What had it meant? Had she received some kind of prophecy? No. If there was a prophecy, it would have been sent to the medicine cat or leader. Sighing, Dovepaw pushed the dream back to the edges of her mind and curled up in her nest in the apprentice den.

_End Chapter_

_**A/N:**_** Ill update soon as I can….**

**Check out my poll on my profile.**

**I need warrior names for Icepaw and Foxpaw**

**Oh yeah the Allegiances is on my profile.**

**In case you didn't notice, the review button is just below this. Click it. You know you waaaaaanna.**


	3. Chapter 3

_**A/N**_** yay chapter 2 took me long enough^^**

**I'll try to update quicker but I couldn't think of anything!!**

**Thanks to blossomstar of seasonclan I have names for icepaw and foxpaw!**

**Chapter 2: Follower**

Jayfeather looked up; Ivypaw was looking at him from where she sat at her nest. He would never get used to seeing another cat watching him every time he slept. Thinking about sleeping Jayfeather remembered his confusing dream from that night.

_He was in StarClan's hunting grounds, though he didn't recognize the mystic clearing he was in. he looked around but there were no cats waiting to greet him. For the first time he noticed his surroundings; he was in a small clearing surrounded by sparse underbrush and a few small poplar trees, a small pool that looked almost like the Moonpool lay to the left of him, other then that the clearing had been deserted._ _He felt drawn instinctively towards the pool. So he padded cautiously over and looked down. What he saw was confusing. There in the pool he saw the vague outline of a cat, but all he could tell was that whoever it was was in great pain and begging for help. The blurry image disappeared only to have another. In this vision, there were many cats fighting. Although he could barely see, he could just make out the full moon floating above their heads._

Firestar's familiar call pulled him out of his thoughts. "Let all cats old enough to catch their own prey gather here beneath Highledge."

Jayfeather turned and slowly moved from his den, motioning with his tail for his apprentice to follow. Jayfeather did not move far from his den, for like all the medicine cats before him, they stood apart from the rest of the clan. He could feel Ivypaw's eyes trained on him and he could tell she wanted to join the other apprentices. He nodded to her and he heard the patter of paws as she raced away to be with her sister. Again Jayfeather thought about the prophecy he and Lionblaze were definitly a part of, but was it Dovepaw or Ivypaw who was the third? By the time the clan had gathered, a sleek-looking Foxpaw and Icepaw were sitting in the front of Highledge, their heads held high**.**

"Icepaw, Foxpaw please step forward. I, Firestar, leader of ThunderClan, call upon my warrior ancestors to look down on these apprentices. They have trained hard to understand the way of your noble code, and I commend them to be warriors in their turn. Foxpaw, Icepaw, do you promise to uphold the warrior code and to protect and defend your clan even at the cost of your life?"

Icepaw didn't hesitate as she replied "I do." she sounded as excited as a kit.

Foxpaw was more calm as he answered, but any cat could see excitement dancing in his eyes.

Firestar continued, "Then by the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior names. Icepaw, from this moment on you will be known Icewing. StarClan honors your determination and courage and we welcome you as a full warrior of ThunderClan." Firestar bounded forward and rested his muzzle on the new warriors' head.

Then Firestar turned his attention to Foxpaw and announced, "By the powers of StarClan, I give you your warrior name. Foxpaw, from this moment on you will be known as Foxwhisker. StarClan honors your bravery and strength." Then again he rested his muzzle on Foxwhisker's head and the clan cheered loudly, "Icewing, Foxwhisker!" Firestar twitched his tail, inviting everyone to come congratulate the new warriors.

Later that night Jayfeather awoke from yet another incoherent dream. He got up and stretched, he tasted the air and noticed that Ivypaw's scent was stale, as if she had not been there since this afternoon when he had her sorting herbs. He felt a pain of panic he should have noticed his apprentice's disappearance sooner.=2 0He quickly stalked out of his den sniffing the air often as he walked. Then he caught a fresh scent of her.

He heard a yowl of pain from Highledge. Forgetting his apprentice, Jayfeather ran towards the noise. He dashed into his leader's den without announcing his arrival and ran to Firestar's side. Firestar's spasms of pain had calmed a bit but he seemed to be having trouble breathing. No doubt that horrible shrieking would have woken the whole clan. He dashed out again and bumped into Ivypaw who had followed him up.

"Get me some belladonna, cobwebs, comfrey root, crushed rose thorns, oak leaves, goldenrod and coltsfoot, NOW," He hissed urgently, then continued, "Tell Brambleclaw not to let anybody up for any reason." She nodded looking very scared but said nothing as she ran off. Jayfeather ran back in and realized, shocked, that Firestar had stopped breathing. His leader was losing a life, though it was not his last. He inspected his leader closely, and let out a startled wail at what he f ound. His leader had a deep gash in his neck. It had been quick and neat; Firestar had not struggled. It may have been his only wound but it was deep and his leader might lose more then one life.

Ivypaw came bounding in with what he had asked for. He went straight for the cobwebs; he had to stop the bleeding, fast! He could here the mews of his clanmates below but didn't take any notice. The worst part of the bleeding had stopped but he could already smell an infection. There seemed no end to the problems, but as the moon sank below the trees Firestar let out a gasp and awoke. Jayfeather had done his best and other then the cut on his neck Firestar looked as healthy as he had yesterday.

Firestar turned to Jayfeather and meowed "Before you ask what happened I'll tell you. I was laying down when I heard a voice from the mouth of the den. I turned to see who wanted me but no one was there. I felt a rush of cold air then I was attacked." Jayfeather just nodded, too horrorstruck to respond.

"Now, could you please send Sandstorm, Squirrelflight and Leaf- Sandstorm and Squirrelflight to me?"

Jayfeather felt a stab of pity for his leader, he hardly ever thought of his exiled mother. He hadn't realized that Firestar probably missed Leafpool as much as he missed Hollyleaf.

Jayfeather bounded down from the Highledge and over to his aunt and grandmother.

"Firestar wants to see you," He announced. They both nodded and ran towards Firestar's den.

Jayfeather called to his apprentice and they walked back to the medicine cat den.

He lay down in his comfortable nest but sleep was hard to come by after the chilling story Firestar had told. What unseen force had attacked his leader? He knew nothing except that they hadn't seen the last of whatever it was.


End file.
